Echinacea  plant named ‘Leilani’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct  Echinacea  plant named ‘Leilani’ characterized by large yellow inflorescences, a short habit with good branching, a narrow, upright habit, strong stems, and excellent vigor.

Botanical denomination: Echinacea spp.

Variety designation: ‘Leilani’.

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Echinacea and given the cultivar name ‘Leilani’. Echinacea is in the family Asteraceae. This new cultivar is a fourth generation seeding originating from a planned breeding program using Echinacea paradoxa (an unpatented plant) as the seed parent in the original cross and Echinacea purpurea ‘Ruby Giant’ (an unpatented plant) as the pollen parent. The exact parents of this selection are unknown, unnamed, proprietary plants.

Compared to Echinacea ‘Mac ‘n’ Cheese’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 19,464), the most similar plant on the market, the new variety is more vigorous, has more crowns, larger inflorescences, and the flowers are more yellow, less gold, in color.

Compared to Echinacea ‘Now Cheesier’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 23,059), the new variety is shorter with flowers that are more yellow, less gold, in color.

Compared to Echinacea Harvest Moon™ (‘Matthew Saul’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 17,652), the new variety has longer and wider ray florets and a shorter habit.

This new Echinacea cultivar is distinguished by:

-   -   1. large yellow inflorescences,     -   2. a short habit with good branching,     -   3. narrow, upright habit,     -   4. strong stems, and     -   5. excellent vigor.

This new cultivar has been reproduced only by asexual propagation (division and tissue culture). Each of the progeny exhibits identical characteristics to the original plant. Asexual propagation by division and tissue culture using standard micropropagation techniques with terminal and lateral shoots, as done in Canby, Oreg., shows that the foregoing characteristics and distinctions come true to form and are established and transmitted through succeeding propagations. The present invention has not been evaluated under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary with variations in environment without a change in the genotype of the plant.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 shows the inflorescences of Echinacea ‘Leilani’ on a one-year-old plant growing in the field in full sun in early September in Canby, Oreg.

DETAILED PLANT DESCRIPTION

The following is a detailed description of the new Echinacea cultivar based on observations of 18-month-old specimens growing in the trial bed in full sun in Canby, Oreg. Canby is in Zone 8 on the USDA Hardiness map. Temperatures range from a high of 95 degrees F. in August to an average of 32 degrees F. in January. Normal rainfall in Canby is 42.8 inches per year in the trial fields in Canby, Oreg. The color descriptions are all based on The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 5^(th) edition.

-   Plant:     -   -   Type.—Herbaceous perennial.         -   Hardiness.—USDA Zones 4 to 9.         -   Size.—Grows to about 39 cm wide and 63 cm tall to top of             inflorescences.         -   Form.—Basal clump, with about 18 stems from the base.         -   Vigor.—Excellent.         -   Roots.—Fibrous, with many downward growing and few laterals,             ivory in color, Yellow White 158D, roots develop easily from             cuttings from the crown. -   Stem (flowering):     -   -   Type.—Ascending, with 1 to 6 inflorescences per stem.         -   Size.—To 55 cm tall to a terminal inflorescence and 5 mm             wide at base.         -   Internode length.—1 cm to 3 cm.         -   Surface texture.—Strigose.         -   Color.—Yellow Green 146C. -   Leaf (basal):     -   -   Type.—Simple.         -   Shape.—Lanceolate.         -   Arrangement.—Basal.         -   Blade size.—Grows to 11 cm long and 4 cm wide.         -   Margins.—Sparsely serrate.         -   Apex.—Acuminate.         -   Base.—Attenuate.         -   Surface texture.—Strigose on both sides.         -   Venation.—Pinnate, with 3 main veins.         -   Color.—Topside Green 137A bottom side Yellow Green 147B.         -   Petiole description.—Grows to 17 cm long and 3 mm wide,             strigose, Yellow Green 146C. -   Leaf (stem):     -   -   Type.—Simple.         -   Shape.—Lanceolate.         -   Arrangement.—Alternate.         -   Blade size.—Grows to 11 cm long and 3.7 cm wide.         -   Margins.—Coarsely, irregularly serrate.         -   Apex.—Acuminate.         -   Base.—Attenuate.         -   Surface texture.—Strigose on both sides.         -   Venation.—Pinnate, with 3 main veins from the base.         -   Color.—Topside Yellow Green 137A, bottom side Yellow Green             147B.         -   Petiole description.—On lowermost leaves only, clasping,             grows to 7 cm long and 2 mm wide above the clasp, strigose,             Yellow Green 146B. -   Inflorescence:     -   -   Type.—Composite on terminal stalked heads.         -   Number of flowering stems from the ground.—About 18.         -   Flowering stem.—Grows to 55 cm tall from the base of the             plant to the terminal inflorescence and can grow to 9 to 15             cm long from the top stem leaf to the base of an             inflorescence; branched with 1 to 6 inflorescences per stem;             diameter growing to 8 mm wide near the inflorescence;             strigose; Yellow Green 146C.         -   Size.—Grows to 13 cm wide and 4.5 cm deep as disc enlarges.         -   Form.—Ray florets held slightly reflexed, mature disc is             conic.         -   Immature inflorescence.—Grows to 3 cm wide and 3 cm deep,             ray florets held upright and rolled up so only the back             color shows, Yellow 10A, disc color Yellow Green 144A.         -   Ray florets.—Without pistil or stamen, about 20 full size in             number (and about 4 smaller ray florets growing at irregular             angles), grow to 60 mm long and 15 mm wide, oblanceolate             with the tip two -toothed (each acute), entire margins, base             attenuate, glabrous on both sides; topside Yellow Orange 17A             maturing to Yellow 11A, bottom side Yellow Orange 16D.         -   Disc.—Flat becoming conic, becoming 35 mm deep and 43 mm             wide with maturity, Yellow Green 147B in the background and             Yellow Orange 21A in the foreground.         -   Disc florets.—About 320 in number, each with 1 pistil and 4             stamen, grow to 12 mm long and 1.5 mm wide, each with one             persistent, very stiff linear bract (14 mm long with the top             4 mm colored Yellow Orange 23A on tip then Yellow Green 144A             in middle, then Yellow Green 145D on bottom ⅓); corollas 6             mm long and 1.5 mm wide, tubular, 5 lobed, glabrous, Yellow             Green 146C; pistil 11 mm long, ovary 4 mm long, White 155A,             style 5 mm long Yellow Green 145D, 2-branched stigma             spreading, Grey Brown 199B; stamen 7 mm long, filaments 4 mm             long and Yellow Green 145D, anthers 2 mm long and Greyed             Purple N186A, pollen Yellow Orange 17A.         -   Phyllaries.—In 4 leafy series, area grows to 35 mm wide and             15 mm deep, lobes lanceolate in shape, reflexed, grow to 20             mm long and 3.5 mm wide, Green 137A, margins strigose, tip             acute, strigose on both sides.         -   Receptacle.—Grows to 12 mm wide and 16 mm deep, White 155B.         -   Bloom period.—July through October in Canby, Oreg.         -   Fragrance.—Good, floral.         -   Lastingness.—Each inflorescence lasts about two weeks in             Canby, Oreg. -   Seeds: 3 mm long and 2.5 mm wide, oval, Brown 200C.     -   -   Fertility.—Low. -   Disease and pests: No pests or diseases have been observed on plants     grown under commercial conditions in Canby, Oreg. No resistances are     known. 

I claim:
 1. A new and distinct Echinacea plant as herein illustrated and described. 